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Chemical weathering and chemical runoffs in the seashore granite hills in South China

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Abstract

Surface runoffs and the contents of major ions and dissolved silicon were surveyed and analyzed based on weekly sampling for one year in a granite watershed of Zhuhai City, Guangdong Province. The results demonstrated that the slope runoff played an essential role in feeding the rivulet during precipitation, whereas the groundwater was more important for the rivulet in the non-raining stages. Dissolved silicon, Na+, HCO3 −, and Cl− ions constituted the major chemical components of the rivulet water. Atmospheric CO2 and H2SO4 sourced from the oxidation of pyrite were the main erosive mediums in the natural chemical weathering. Natural chemical weathering, the wet and dry deposition of sea-salt, and acids precipitation contributed approximately equal shares of anions to the rivulet water. The ratio of NO3 − to SO4 2− was more than 1.0 in the runoff of the studied seashore watershed, whereas it is less than 1.0 in the Xijiang River that is adjacent to the study area. This implied that the chemical composition of runoff is controlled mainly by the differences in atmospheric acid precipitation caused by human activities and lithology within the catchments under the same bio-climate zone. The CO2 flux consumed by the rock chemical weathering processes within the seashore granite watershed in South China was (0.35–1.37)×105 mol km−2 a−1.

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  1. School of Geography and Planning, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510275, China

    QuanZhou Gao & Zhen Tao

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  1. QuanZhou Gao
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  2. Zhen Tao
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Correspondence to Zhen Tao.

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Gao, Q., Tao, Z. Chemical weathering and chemical runoffs in the seashore granite hills in South China. Sci. China Earth Sci. 53, 1195–1204 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11430-010-4007-y

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